


to be just

by isuilde



Category: Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger
Genre: Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Newly established relationship, takes place shortly before the four last episodes i guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-19
Updated: 2017-09-19
Packaged: 2018-12-31 15:01:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,536
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12135009
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/isuilde/pseuds/isuilde
Summary: The consequences of playing an Ally of Justice.(or, Ian is terrible at giving sensible advices, but it isn't exactly what Souji looks from him anyway so it's fine, isn't it?)





	to be just

**Author's Note:**

> I was writing something else that is kind of heavier emotionally and I decided to run away and write this fluff instead.
> 
> (Based on an unfinished dream I had a few months ago of Ian and Souji.)

Rippuukan Souji, for all he could be the most stubborn and short-fused person Ian has ever befriended (and dated, but nobody knows about their young relationship yet, though Ian is positive that Daigo definitely knows), is not the type to purposefully get in fights with others. Deboss Army being the only exception, of course.

The point is, in the span of nearly a year Ian has known the team, Souji has never been in any fight if it isn't Deboss-related. Half of it, he knows, is Souji's own pride and way of sword--you don't draw your sword on the purpose of harming others. Another half is because both Utsusemimaru and Torin have drilled into the younger swordsman about how he needs to be aware of his power--as a warrior of the Great Dinosaurs of old, he has to be responsible of his own power and not abuse it, even if it's in the name of justice. After all, what's just for someone doesn't mean the same to another.

Souji, for his part, has been dutifully obliging those teachings. Which is why, when Ian warps into the Spirit Base following Utsusemimaru and Amy to find Souji sitting on the central stone table, the left half of his face black and blue, he takes a moment to blink several times.

Huh. That's a surprise.

"Souji-kun!" Amy exclaims in surprise, her voice a harmony with Utsusemimaru's more worried, "Souji-dono?!"

Souji looks up from whatever homework he's working on, fleetingly glances at them, and scowls even deeper.

"What happened?" Amy demands, and Ian, bemused, watches her stride over, one hand reaching out but stopping when Souji flinches away. God, his face looks _awful._ The area around his left eye is turning deep blue, and his cheek is already swelling a bit. Utsusemimaru disappears quickly to the back, muttering something about getting an ice pack.

"Nothing," Souji says, his tone clipped and underlined with anger. "Leave me alone."

"But..." Amy makes an aborted move, like she wants to reach out again, but Souji clearly has his wall up and there's nothing she could do except exchange helpless glances with Ian. Souji turns his attention back to his homework, continuing the angry scratching noise of his pen against his book.

Utsusemimaru stumbled back into the central room, hands carrying an ice pack and a wet cloth, but stops dead on his track when he notices the seemingly permanent scowl on Souji's face. He looks back at the items in his hands hesitantly, then at Amy, at Ian, and finally at Souji, looking like he's a second away from fretting, and says, "Souji-dono, at least use these to cool it off--"

Ian stares Souji, takes in the swelling cheek and the knitted eyebrows, the thin line of Souji's lips, the way he grips his pen and the tension of his shoulders.

Not just a simple fight, then.

He steps down the platform, careful to do so in light steps, and takes the ice pack and wet cloth from Utsusemimaru's hands. "Leave it to me," he mutters under his breath, giving his trademark reassuring smile when Utsusemimaru gives him a worried look. He nods at Amy when she catches his eyes, and she steps away, worried eyes never leaving as she does so. Sitting down, he places the ice pack and the wet cloth lightly on the table, and then silently presses the cool cloth against Souji's cheek.

Souji yelps, flinching away, but Ian's hand follows him anyway. "What, _ugh_ ," Souji says, glares, and Ian just raises an eyebrow until the glare turns half-hearted.

"Go away," Souji grumbles, a hand coming up to swat at Ian, but Ian's ready for it, too. He swats it back, catches it when Souji doesn't give up, sliding his palm down to lace their fingers together. "Stay still," he tells Souji, and sighs when Souji just scowls deeper.

He sees Souji's eyes dart somewhere off his back, and Ian wonders if Utsusemimaru and Amy are still watching. He thinks he hears the sounds of shuffling feet moving away, so maybe they're giving them some space after all. Souji winces when Ian moves his hand to cover the swelling area by Souji's left eye, but says nothing.

His scowl, however, isn't letting off.

"Hey," Ian says, and the honest softness in his voice sort of scares him a little. It's terrifying how fond he feels of Souji sometimes. "It's fine, you know. Looks cool. Battle scars and all that."

If anything, that only serves to deepen Souji's frown. Ian shrugs, because he knows whatever he says at this point would still somehow pisses Souji off anyway. So he stays silent, taking away the wet cloth to replace it with an ice pack.

Interestingly, Souji doesn't let go of his hand. Yeah, okay, Ian could totally go with that.

"You didn't fight back, did you?" Ian asks--guesses, really, because there's no way anything short of a Deboss monster attack could turn Souji black and blue like this. "I'm pretty sure Torin won't mess up your face in the name of sparring, so--"

"Maybe I should have," Souji bites out angrily, and Ian's superficial words trail off to nothing. "Maybe punch them back. At least once. Then maybe they'd think twice before bullying others."

So he was fighting bullies. Ian thinks he should be alarmed at how quickly his chest is flooded with warmth at the very thought of Souji standing up against delinquents protecting a defenseless schoolmate. Always making a steadfast stand for what he thinks is right, straightforward and almost too honest--there are things Ian finds himself envious of Souji, to the point he wishes to be able to make them tangible and grasp them in his hands, if only for the illusion of having them.

He says none of this out loud. He does, however, hums lightly and lets a thumb stroke Souji's hand. "Playing the Ally of Justice?"

Once, Souji would have taken offense at his joke. Once, Souji would have thought Ian is downplaying the problem, or that Ian is making fun of him. Now, all Souji does is frown at him, eyes searching Ian's own for a long moment as if to ascertain what lies behind the playful words, before he sniffs out a short laugh that spells out no humor. "We kind of already are."

"True," Ian allows, inwardly smiling because he could already feel Souji's wall crumbling. The scowl on Souji's face is vanishing, and though his eyebrows are still knitted in anger, the tension on his shoulders are lessening.

"I know I shouldn't fight them," Souji says. "It's not right. It's not what this strength is for. But they're--is it really okay, letting them go just like that?"

Ian shifts his hand, thumb stroking the line of Souji's jaw lightly, lips thinning at the bruises forming there. "Why isn't it okay?"

"Because I wanted to protect others. That's what I wanted strength for," Souji looks down at his free hand, clenching it into a fist. "It's why I wanted to be stronger. But they're bullies--they'll come back, or bully some other people, and maybe if I use this strength on them they would stop--"

"Then punch them in the face next time," Ian suggests, grins when Souji throws him an incredulous look. "See, you don't believe that would solve anything either."

Souji's expression softens. He shakes his head, a small smile tugging on the corners of his lips, and that's the last of his wall crumbling down. Ian allows himself a silent cheer at that. "Talking to you is a mistake," Souji tells him, and Ian chuckles, takes Souji's other hand to place it over and hold the ice pack.

"I never claim to be the sensible adult," he replies, smiling at the way Souji roll his eyes. "I don't hold the answers to mysteries in life. You already have two teachers for that."

He squeezes Souji's hand lightly, before taking a quick glance around the Spirit Base to make certain that no one else is around. Utsusemimaru had probably dragged Amy to the back, presumably to make afternoon snacks, and there's no sign of Daigo or Torin anyway. Nobuharu shouldn't arrive until work hours is over, either--

"Thank you, Ian."

That halts his train of thoughts. "Huh?"

The hand in his own squeezes tight. Souji leans sideways, resting his forehead on Ian's shoulder in a rare display of affection, and something in Ian's chest positively melts. God, he is so far gone it's not even funny.

Souji lets out a sigh. "I feel better about it now."

"That's good," Ian says smoothly, even if inwardly he doesn't feel like that was smooth at all. "How's your homework? Is it English? I could look it over even if it's not English, unless it's Japanese Classic Literature--"

"Ian," Souji says fondly, one hand still pressing an ice pack against the general left area of his face, head still resting on Ian's shoulder. "Shut up."

Ian's good with it, too. So he does, silently presses a kiss on top of Souji's head, and winds one arm around Souji's shoulders.

They hold hands for a long time, afterwards.

**\-----o0o-----**

**Author's Note:**

> Headcanon time! I like thinking about Ian, who is usually super smooth to everyone, actually inwardly fumbling awkwardly when it comes to his relationship with Souji. And maybe freaking out a bit over how much he's head over heels for Souji. After all, he probably hasn't had many serious, long-term relationship. Souji may or may not be oblivious about this fact. ;D


End file.
